Tag Archive for: #towntalk

TownTalk: Around Old Granville – Vance County Historical Markers

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Placing historical markers along prominent roadways is one way to make sure that they’ll be seen by lots of people driving by, but it also means that they run the risk of being struck by a wayward vehicle or even by the occasional grass mowing crews keeping the shoulders tidy.

Vance County has 16 historical markers located within its boundaries – seven of them honor individuals and the other nine are for particular events, towns and structures.

Pace and WIZS’s Bill Harris continued their discussion of historical markers with a focus on Vance County on Thursday’s Around Old Granville segment of TownTalk.

There are no fewer than five markers in and around Williamsboro, and Pace said that’s a nod to when the area – now not much more than a crossroads – was a thriving community back in the pre-Revolutionary days of the 1700’s. Williamsborough, as it was known during Colonial times, has its own marker which reads: “Eighteenth century town, named for John Williams, judge, state legislator, congressman, who lived nearby. Old St. John’s Church is here.”

“You wouldn’t know it riding through there today,” Pace said. Except for the fact that the historical markers bring attention to St. John’s Episcopal Church, the oldest frame church building in the state, as well as James Turner, an early governor and senator who lived in nearby.

Another marker remembers the Bingham School, which didn’t stay very long in Williamsboro, but was the first military school, established in 1826.

The marker for Richard Henderson originally had been placed on Norlina Road, across from the former WHNC radio station, but Pace said it was relocated to Satterwhite Point Road, about a mile from where his grave is. Henderson was the founder of Transylvania County in Kentucky and Nashville, TN.

Another Henderson, Leonard Henderson, has a marker, too. He’s who the city is named for, Pace said, but he was also an educator and a member of the first state Supreme Court in the early 1800’s.

The majority of the markers remind passersby of people and places long gone: there’s the Glass House in Kittrell, for example, that had been a destination for wealthy Northerners to escape city winters and enjoy the healing powers the area’s springs. And there’s Kittrell’s Springs, the health resort-turned hospital for Confederate soldiers in the waning days of the Civil War.

And the Confederate cemetery, where 52 soldiers’ graves are located.

But the historical marker that was placed in 2007 recalls a more recent event that has claimed its own place in history: The strike at Harriet-Henderson cotton mill occurred between 1958 and 1961, and Pace said it helped to showcase the South as a place where unions didn’t have traction as in other areas of the country, particularly the Northeast.

And although it’s not the earliest marker to be erected, the marker for John Lederer along N.C. 39 north of Townsville honors a pioneering German explorer who traveled in the area in 1670, with the help of a Native American guide.

Pace said Lederer may very well be the first person of European descent to set foot in this part of the world, but he sort of “fell through the cracks, history wise,” Pace added.

Are there other potential people and places that could be honored with their own historical marker?

Surely, Pace said.

He would consider the Blacknall family’s Continental Plant Co. that shipped strawberry plants all over the world, Greystone Quarry as well as Kerr Lake, which was the largest reservoir east of the Mississippi when U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built between 1947 and 1952.

Find a county-by-county listing of historical markers at https://www.dncr.nc.gov/nc-historical-markers-guide-may-2024/open

 

Listen back to the entire interview at www.wizs.com.

 

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TownTalk: Varonica “VV” Mitchell Making Her Mark

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Henderson’s own Varonica Mitchell – VV, as she’s known to many – has a lot going on these days. In addition to having 3 million followers on social media, VV also has been out to L.A. for a film she’s going to be in, and she’s getting ready to go to Atlanta to be part of a Christian Comedy Tour.

WIZS News caught up with VV on the occasion of her 14th birthday last week to find out what’s new and to hear what motivates her as she drums, jokes, dances and acts her way into the hearts of her fans and followers.

It’s a family affair, this enterprise that has VV traveling to the West Coast for this and down to the ATL for that. And VV would have it no other way.

“That’s the most important part,” VV said in her best professional, polished voice about working with her parents and older sister.

She really likes dancing and she is part of the iDance Praise Academy, which her mom, Vanessa, runs.

She likes dancing because she gets “to follow God. I feel like he wants me to continue doing  what I’m doing – putting His name out there to people can follow Him,” she said.

“I dance to gospel music – I get to tell his story through music and through movement,” she said.

Dancing, acting and being a comedian is serious stuff, and VV says she and her family know when it’s time for business and when it’s time for having fun family time.

“Family is family, of course, when I’m chillin’ with the family watching videos and stuff,” she said. “But family is business when we’re going out and I’m performing. They’re always there to support…but they know that it’s serious,” she said, and they know when it’s time to play and when it’s time to be professional.

Sometimes before a performance, she admits, she gets so hyped up that she’s liable to blurt out whatever pops into her mind, but she can talk herself back down and calm her nerves before a show or performance begins. That’s being professional.

But when she’s at home? Well, “I’m gon’ play my behind off,” she joked, following up with a big ol’ giggle.

The Zara Project is what took her to L.A. It’s a series about a little girl with superpowers. “I can’t wait to tell you more about it,” she said. For now, the lid is on and, just like other film stars promoting upcoming projects, details are few.

And just like other film stars, VV has an agent. Her name is Irene Dreayer and she’s with Lion Forge Entertainment.

Appearing on TV shows, granting interviews, getting sponsors and having a big presence on Zigazoo, the #1 social media app for kids is just part of what VV is and what she wants to keep doing. She sometimes feels the pressure, but that’s part of it, too.

“I do feel the pressure. I just let it roll off,” she said. Because this is what she wants to do, and she wants to keep doing it.

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TownTalk: Pathways 2 Peace

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According to the 2020 Census, the population of Vance County is 42,578. According to state government statistics, there are 720 nonprofit organizations located in the county. Simple math will tell you that’s one nonprofit for roughly every 59 residents.

Matthew Todd and Charles J. Turrentine Jr. had absolutely no idea that they’d be part of creating nonprofit number 721, but that’s exactly what has happened.

Pathways 2 Peace is gathering steam and its members have their sights set on making a difference in Henderson and Vance County.

At a Mar. 17 listening session hosted by Partners 2 Peace, community members gathered to voice opinions and concerns, as well as offer possible solutions to problems like gun violence and crime that have plagued the area.

There’s state money available to launch a range of projects and programs, according to folks at the Governor’s Crime Commission who attended the listening session, but Pathways 2 Peace has a little work to do first.

Gov. Josh Stein is allocating money – earmarked by Gov. Roy Cooper – to stop violence in impoverished counties in the state, Todd said on Tuesday’s TownTalk. A message that was repeated several different times during the listening session involved the number of nonprofits in the county and the apparent disconnect among them.

There’s a need to “connect the dots,” so the folks who are giving the money know the folks who are spending the money are doing everything above board.

“What sets us apart is we’ve got a governor’s administration behind us and they’re helping us navigate the nonprofit world,” Todd said.

“They are both willing to guide us through the process and keep us in the right path,” Turrentine said.

Turrentine wants to see the group “come up with practical ways that we can collectively come together as a board or committee to inflict positive change in our town,” he said. One thing he and board members are passionate about is helping youth.

Last summer’s collaboration with AIMHigh’s Park and Play program is one example of connecting the dots. Turrentine said Jessica Rice Hawkins and team visited low-income housing neighborhoods.

“The kids were excited when they saw the van and it was time (for) Park and Play,” Turrentine said.

He got the Davis Chapel Missionary Baptist Church Soup Kitchen on board to provide meals for the participants.

This year, Pathways 2 Peace is looking forward to sponsoring those 75 youth in an upcoming road race that AIMHigh is sponsoring in downtown Henderson. “We’ll sponsor these kids and they’ll run for free,” Turrentine said.

Last summer, AIM High went to the children. This year, the children are headed into the larger community to take part in something positive and beneficial.

Nonprofits working together = dots connecting.

“We want to teach people about accountability,” Todd said. Whether you’re 5 or 6 years old on the playground, a teenager on the ball field or court or whether you’re 25 or 30 years old in a board room, taking personal accountability for your actions is critical.

Programs that involve youth are programs that are worthy of investment.

“We’re on the ground floor with Pathways 2 Peace,” Todd said.

With a mission statement that reads “Through unity, environmental design and intentional actions, we create safe spaces, shifting mindsets and changing the narrative of Henderson and Vance County, one step at a time,” Pathways 2 Peace could be a key partner in coalescing efforts from other local nonprofits in addressing challenges like gun violence and promoting youth programs.

“Through good works, through honest works, we can change things for the better,” Turrentine said.

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TownTalk: Purple Heart Signs Reign In Henderson

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The Purple Heart is a combat medal for members of the military who have been wounded in battle.

Sometimes, the person gets the award while he or she is living; but the award can be given at any time to veterans who qualify and also can be awarded posthumously.

At a recent ceremony in Henderson, local veterans, city leaders and others gathered to officially designate – with signs along key roadways and elsewhere – that the city is a “Purple Heart City.”

The original designation was made more than a decade ago, in 2012, said Hartwell Wright with American Legion Post 60 and with Chapter 637 of the Military Order of the Purple Heart.

But that’s as far as things went, Wright said. “No formal action was ever taken,” he said.

The state didn’t provide funds to create signs for the designation, but city leaders decided to change that.

There are signs at NC 39 North near the water treatment plant, two small signs on Beckford Drive, one at the movie theater and one at the Henderson Fruit & Produce on Old Norlina Road, and city staff may be placing additional signs soon, if there aren’t more up already. The Purple Heart chapter donated some of the smaller signs that have been placed in the city; the city created signs that are placed at the city limits.

The signs are tangible ways to recognize all purple heart recipients as they come through town, either as visitors or as residents – “to show we appreciate them and show them they’ll never be forgotten,” Wright said.

According to information provided Tuesday by Henderson Public Information Officer Salonia Saxton, the city is providing 25 Purple Heart signs that are located under each entrance to the city and under the speed limit signs throughout the area.

Wright, himself a Purple Heart recipient, provided remarks during the Mar. 7 ceremony to provide those in attendance a little history of the medal.

It is the oldest U.S. military award still given, he said.

Originally known as the Badge of Military Merit, it was established by George Washington in 1782 as a way to recognize rank and file fighting men, Wright said. At the time, only the elite officers would receive any type of commendation for combat-related actions, but Washington sought to create a medal for the average soldier.

In 1932, it was reimagined and was given the name it still has today.

Although there’s no way to know exactly how many Purple Heart recipients reside in Vance County today, Wright said he is among a group of people that is planning – with input from city staff – a veterans memorial that will be located just in front of the police department.

“We don’t have one in Vance County,” Wright said. Once the plans make their way through the design phase, Wright said the fundraising will begin.

Veterans are invited to a free veterans breakfast next Monday, Apr. 7 beginning at 8 a.m. at the VGCC Civic Center (Building 9), located at 200 Community College Rd., Henderson.

Contact Albert Spiess with Granville County Veterans Services

at 919.693.1484 or via email albert.spiess@granvillecounty.org to learn more.

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TownTalk: Utility Payment Scam Calls

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There’s another scam circulating in the area, according to the Henderson Police Department. This time, police officials say, they’ve received reports that someone is calling claiming to be from a utility company.

The caller says the utility service is being cut off and then provides another number to call to provide payment information – that can either be made from your bank account or cryptocurrency.

The police have one simple bit of advice: HANG UP!

Call the utility company yourself, using the number printed on your utility bill or from the company website – do NOT use the call-back number provided by the caller.

Often, the call-back numbers are fake, officials say. And if the message came via text, do not respond; rather, mark the number as junk or spam and report.

Customers should continue to use their regular method of payment and not follow the directions of the caller.

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TownTalk: From An Owner’s Perspective – WIZS Radio

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Editor’s note: WIZS part-timer Jayden Watkins took some time to sit and chat with John Charles Rose for Thursday’s segment of TownTalk. In what amounts to a role-reversal of sorts, Watkins was the interviewer who posed questions to John Charles to learn more about his life’s work and his vision of the radio station’s role in the community.

There are so many different ways to define “family” these days: there’s family that we’re related to, by birth or by marriage; then there’s “work” family – the people we spend so much time with as we go about our jobs; and there’s also the community of people who live near us, in the same town or even in the same neighborhood.

And since WIZS Radio is a family-owned business serving a local market, Rose finds himself keeping an eye out for them all as he goes about a normal workday.

“I care a lot about what I do,” he said on Thursday’s TownTalk, reflecting back on his career that includes owner/operator/reporter/writer/interviewer/engineer/ad seller.

“I’m still in it, rollin’ hard, rockin’ and rollin’, going just as hard as I can,” even though it may not have been exactly the career path his father would have chosen for his only child.

John D. Rose III would have been 81 this year. Since his dad’s death in 2007, John Charles has stepped in and stepped up to be the guiding force of the radio station.

Gathering news has evolved from the days when he followed his dad around the Henderson Daily Dispatch newsroom and later around the radio station, which members of the Rose family bought in June 1989.

“My daddy just loved radio,” Rose said. “I love radio and I loved my dad,” so it wasn’t a surprise that when it came time for college, John Charles headed off to UNC-Chapel Hill to study broadcast journalism.

By that time, however, he’d already learned the workings of the local station inside and out. He started out mowing the grass, but soon found himself inside the station behind the mic and running the board.

“I grew up around him doing his job,” Rose recalled of his childhood years with his dad. “We listened to scanners and went to car wrecks and fires and things that were going on that were news items. You didn’t gather the news electronically like you do now. You had to go…you had to be there and talk to the people there on the scene and find out what was going on.”

He graduated from UNC in 1998 and “I’ve been rollin’ ever since.”

But it’s not always easy, he readily admits. There are fewer and fewer locally owned and operated radio stations in the U.S. “It can be a difficult push at times.”

He said he’s proud of the staff that keeps things (mostly) humming as the radio station keeps its focus local.

“We’re a mainstream radio station,” Rose said. “We don’t have a niche, but if we did have a niche, our niche is local…local is what people want to hear.”

But when you’re a small station with a small group of employees, it’s tough to be at every city and county meeting, every ribbon-cutting and sports event important in the life of a community.

“My family now – the wife and children that I have – they suffer at times for want of more attention and time from me. Because I work too much,” he said.

Of all the good parts of the job that he can name, that’s one of the parts that isn’t good because of the effects it has on his family.

And of the things he’s proud of – getting a college degree, having a local radio station that provides a valuable service to the community – he is proudest, hands down, of his family.

“I’m so thankful that God wanted me to be in union with another…and blessed to have children,” he said.

He finds himself giving a lot more thought these days to succession planning. “I want the radio station to be present for Henderson and Vance County long after I am dead and gone. I still don’t have a clear picture of what that looks like, and maybe we never discern that.”

What he is sure about, however, is that if the local paper doesn’t print the local news, or if WIZS doesn’t publish the local news, who’s going to do it?

“Part of my passion is for the radio station to be there and present for its community” long into the future, he said.

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TownTalk: Causey Talks Insurance Rates, Hurricane Helene Cleanup and More

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N.C. Insurance Commissioner Mike Causey and his team at the Department of Insurance are advocates for consumers when it comes to claims disputes or proposed rate hikes for automobile or home insurance.

But it was when Causey was trying to call attention to the health of first responders that he got his own wake-up call, and it probably saved him from a heart attack.

At the request of a fire association in the western part of the state a couple of years ago, Causey agreed to have one of those body scans – a sort of ultrasound – to kick off a health program that was going to be offered to local first responders in the area.

Too many firefighters come back from a fire call or from training and subsequently suffer heart attacks, he said, and he said he was happy to promote health and wellness among those first responders who provide a vital service in their communities.

The body scans “check to see if you’ve got any problems,” he said on Wednesday’s TownTalk and when they got to his heart, “they noticed that something was not quite right with one of the valves.”

Most likely, he’d had it since birth and had been living symptom-free. He has since recovered from a surgery last month to correct the problem and Causey said he’s good as new with heart health restored.

He also pronounced healthy the state’s insurance market, noting that North Carolina enjoys lower rates than many other states.

“We’re probably the healthiest and most stable insurance market in the country,” Causey said, adding that our auto insurance rates are some of the lowest in the nation.

That doesn’t change the fact, however, that some people in the state are paying high rates for automobile insurance, he said, as a result of individual driving records or other factors.

“There’s a lot of upward pressure in every state to raise car insurance premiums,” Causey said. He cited four main factors that drive up rates: distracted driving, speeding, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs and not wearing seatbelts.

Number one is distracted driving, he said. There are too many people texting and driving, causing accidents that sometimes are deadly.

“If we could get people to put down their cell phones, keep both hands on the wheel and pay attention, we’d be better off,” he said.

More people are speeding these days, and whether they’re zipping along the interstate or two-lane roads, it’s a problem. More people are driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, too. And he said it’s hard to believe, but too many people in vehicles just aren’t buckling up.

All those factors can contribute to drivers and passengers being injured in car crashes, but higher vehicle prices also plays a role in increased premiums.

A tap on someone’s bumper could turn into a $2,000 or $3,000 repair, he said.

“The bottom line is people’s driving habits,” Causey said. “As long as people are driving recklessly and speeding and having accidents, it’s going to keep driving up the cost of insurance.”

Western N.C. Hurricane Relief

Causey said the Department of Insurance has had a presence in western N.C. since Helene’s devastating flooding, and he said there’s been “tremendous improvement” especially with road and highway repairs.  With the current threat of wildfires, that part of the state continues to face challenges.

“We go from floods to wildfires,” Causey said. “Whether you lose your home to a wildfire or a flood, it’s still a loss.” Very few of the homeowners had flood insurance, which means “they got zero unless there was some other damage to the house.”

He said he participated in a roundtable discussion back in the fall that took place in Washington, D.C. convened by FEMA and the Treasury Department to hear about the federal response to Helene.

“The big problem is the flood insurance,” Causey said, adding that there needs to be some way to have policies include damage from floods.

The Department of Insurance offers help to consumers – visit www.ncdoi.gov or call 855.408.1212 toll-free to learn more.

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TownTalk: World FlingGolf Tournament Coming to Kerr Lake Country Club

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FlingGolf is a “thing,” and it’s coming to Henderson this weekend.

Exactly what, you may ask, is this thing called fling?

Well, picture, if you will, a lacrosse stick – you know, it’s a long stick with a little basket or cup on one end of it.

Now picture a group of folks, those modified lacrosse sticks in hand, on a golf course. And instead of teeing up the ball in the tee box, the golf ball is nestled in that little cup and gets flung instead of whacked with a driver down the fairway.

Sound interesting? That’s what Johnathan Norton thought when he first started reading about FlingGolf five or so years ago.

It’s been around for a decade or more, but it’s just been in the past few years that the word’s gotten out about this novel sport. And now Henderson has landed the first stop on a national fling golf tour.

Johnathan and his father David Norton were guests on Monday’s TownTalk to talk about the North Carolina Open set for Mar. 29 and 30 at Kerr Lake Country Club. There’s an 8:30 a.m. shotgun start both days, and spectators are welcome. So far, more than 40 people have registered for the tournament, which kicks off the 2025 New Swarm Tour, a 10-tournament series that takes players up and down the East Coast, as well as West Virginia, Missouri and California.

“A lot of the top players will be here,” Johnathan said, including one who lives in Durham, who Johnathan said is the world’s longest flinger with flings of 240 or 250 yards.

According to David, one of the advantages to playing FlingGolf is that no alterations to the golf course are necessary. “You play it just like golf. You just play it like that and have fun with it,” he said.

And players don’t need much equipment, Johnathan said. “One fling stick, one golf ball and you’re good to go.”

Tournament rules state that players have to use the same stick all the way from the tee “fling” to the hole for the entire round; everyday players can choose from among different sticks if they’d like, more like traditional golfers do during a round.

The strategy is quite similar to traditional golf, too, the local FlingGolfers agree. And just like golf clubs, fling sticks are made of different composite materials to accommodate players’ skills and needs.

So when golfers need to “fling” around a dog leg right, they can put a little English on that fling stick and send that ball, hopefully, in the right direction. Ditto with sandtraps and other hazards, same as regular golf.

“There are some people on the tour who are really good at it – I’m still learning,” he said, but “it’s definitely possible…shot-shaping definitely comes into play.”

Visit https://flinggolf.com/pages/wlf to register for the tournament.

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TownTalk: Spring Activities Are Bustin’ Out All Over Granville County

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Granville County is cultivating a variety of springtime activities, with some first-time events sprinkled in amongst others that have become perennial favorites.

County Tourism Director Angela Allen said that, once again, there’s something for everyone in the offerings over the next few weeks and beyond.

Allen shared details about some of the events but recommended a visit to the www.visitgranvillenc.com website for a full listing of what’s coming up in Granville County.

One unique event is The Viking Experience, which has blossomed since its inception four short years ago, Allen said.

Each year, the event has grown – from basically a backyard event when COVID-19 restrictions affected gatherings to a two-weekend event expected to bring folks from across the state and the country, Allen said on Thursday’s TownTalk.

The first weekend is Mar. 22 and 23; the second weekend is Mar. 29 and 30. The “experience” outgrew two other area venues and the mother/daughter duo from the Creedmoor area ended up buying 15 acres that will serve as the host site for this year’s activities.

Those activities include interacting with re-enactors in period dress, as well as music, games and all types of vendors who will be on hand for both weekends.

“You can truly escape into a whole other world,” Allen said. She said folks really get into the whole “other world” where history meets fantasy, but those not into the “culture” who just are curious about what the Viking experience is all about, come on out and take a look.

“They have their own community,” Allen said. “The could have chosen anywhere in North Carolina but they wanted to start at home…this is a way of life for them.”

Visit https://www.thevikingexperiencenc.com/ to find schedules of events and more.

The Bunny Hop Bash is a brand-new event this season, Allen said. It will take place at Clement Farms Saturday, Mar. 22 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.

This is a family-friendly event – “a wonderful collaboration” between a wedding venue and a couple of local businesses.

Modeled after the wildly popular “Jingle Bell Bash,” Allen said Saturday’s event will take advantage of the milder weather and will have carriage rides, a bouncy house, talented local vendors and, of course, a big ol’ Easter Egg hunt and a visit from the Easter Bunny.

Check out https://visitgranvillenc.com/whats-happening/ to find a link to tickets.

Allen has become somewhat synonymous with Granville tourism, having been in the role for a decade. She said she’s witnessed a healthy collaboration grow out of relationships that sometimes get started at local events.

All the networking before and after events allow vendors to learn from – and support – others. It also shows visitors that this area north of the Triangle region is a great place to live and to visit.

“We are all here to lift each other up,” she said.

Other upcoming events and activities include:

  • Saturday, Mar. 29 – Paws for Granville, a dinner and silent auction fundraiser of the Humane Society of Granville County and the Granville County Animal Shelter. Tickets are $40. Deadline to purchase is Monday, Mar. 24. Event will be held at the Barn at Vino in Stem.
  • Sunday, Mar. 30 – Fashion Show at Carlee Farm, 1003 Carlee Farm Rd. Visit vendors for clothing, jewelry, food, beverages and more from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Fashion show will be from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. and includes area boutiques Kissing Booth and Tilly Outfitters, C squared, Rustic Barn among others.
  • Friday, Apr. 4 – Cedar Creek Gallery’s Spring Festival. The gallery has its annual festival, featuring live music, food and drinks, as well as tours of workshops to see artisans as they are creating works from glass, wood, clay and more. Check out https://cedarcreekgallery.com/ for a complete schedule of festival events, which runs through Apr. 13.
  • Sunday, Apr. 13 – EGGstravaganza at Carlee Farms. Allen calls this a “full on spring celebration.” The Easter Bunny will be on site and visitors can enjoy shopping with more than 30 vendors, food trucks and more. This event sponsors a local nonprofit, Families Living Violence Free.
  • Saturday, Apr. 19 – Bullock Beach Music Blast – Williamson’s Country Store, 9023 Hwy. 15 N. in Bullock hosts an evening of music with Jim Quick and Coastline and the Konnection Band, hosted by Mike Brooks and Big Allen D. Gates open at 5, music starts at 6 and lasts until 10 p.m. Bring a lawn chair and your dancin’ shoes to this one.
  • Saturday, Apr. 26 – the Granville Gardeners Expo will take place from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at the Granville County Expo and Convention Center at Hwy. 15 outside of Oxford.
  • Saturday, Apr. 26 – the Central Carolina Highland Games return to Central Children’s Home for a daylong immersion into various traditional Scottish activities – from foods to music from bagpipes and those unique throwing contests where contestants throw things called cabers. It’s all to benefit the Central Children’s Home. Suggested donation is $20 a car.

For a complete listing of events coming up in Granville County, go to https://visitgranvillenc.com/

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TownTalk: N.C. District 32 Rep. Bryan Cohn Introduces HB 269

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Just a couple of months into his term in the N.C. House representing District 32, Bryan Cohn has introduced a bill and co-sponsored another. In between crafting bills and acclimating himself to the workings of state government, Cohn has been crisscrossing the district to talk with constituents.

House Bill 269 is called the Workforce Freedom and Protection Act, which Cohn introduced just a couple of weeks ago. He said so far, it’s gotten some bipartisan compliments – from none other than the newly elected Speaker of the House Destin Hall.

The bill, briefly described as a workers’ rights bill, focuses on removing some restrictions on employees in jobs with salaries under $75,000. Those restrictions could include non-compete clauses, for example, that could affect an employee’s ability to move within their industry.

“They should have the freedom to do so,” Cohn said on Wednesday’s segment of TownTalk.

He said non-competes might be expected in a high-income, high-impact field for doctors or lawyers or company executives.

But the practice has begun to creep into everyday jobs, he said, and that could limit an employee’s freedom to find a better paying job within the same industry.

If the bill is signed into law, Cohn said it would make existing non-competes null and void for workers who make less than $75,000.

“It would immediately give that worker the ability, if they choose, to seek employment that best suits them,” he said.

Another Bill that Cohn has co-sponsored calls for raising the minimum wage to $18 an hour.

North Carolina follows the federal government’s minimum wage, which has been $7.25 since July 2009.

Cohn advocates for having a stairstep increase over a period of time “to reach an agreeable and reasonable” level.

“You can’t shock the system,” he said. “I strongly believe in a tapered minimum wage.” Workers who earn minimum wage often have multiple jobs just to make ends meet. North Carolina’s minimum wage is “not even close to being a livable wage.”

The idea is to put more money in the pockets of workers, of course, but also to invigorate the economy. Right now, many workers in lower pay bands, Cohn said, don’t have extra money left to put into the economy after they’ve paid for rent and groceries.

They’re spending less money because of inflationary pressure, he asserted, which doesn’t do local economies and local businesses any good.

During his visits throughout the district, Cohn said he’s been particularly pleased to learn more about a key community partner – Vance-Granville Community College.

The trades program, for example, Cohn said, is “phenomenal.” He said until he visited the campus recently, he wasn’t aware of just how successful the college’s trades programs have been.

With District 32 positioned so close to the burgeoning Triangle area, Cohn said the growth will continue.

“I’m excited for the growth that this region is going to see over the coming years and decades,” he said.

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